7 Smart Uses for Vinegar

The pantry staple can work wonders on your home.

Vinegar is definitely a versatile item you should keep around the house. What's so great about it? Besides being effective, vinegar is cheap and widely available. It is non-toxic, lasts for a long time without losing strength, and is much safer to have under your sink than bleach, ammonia, or other toxic cleaning products. Many folks also swear by the benefits of apple cider vinegar.

Tap into the many uses:

1. Clean Windows Instead of spending money on window cleaning chemicals — especially ones that include toxic or potentially toxic chemicals — make your own! Mix 2 tablespoons of white vinegar with a gallon of water, and dispense into a used spray bottle. Squirt on, then scrub with newspaper, not paper towels, which cause streaking.

2. Get Fresher Laundry Got grass stains? No problem. Make a mixture of one-third cup white vinegar and two-thirds cup water. Apply the solution to the stain and blot with a clean cloth. Repeat this process until you've removed as much green as possible, and then launder as usual.

When your big washing day comes around, toss in a capful of white vinegar. Your colors will come out bolder and your whites whiter. (If you've recently had an encounter with a skunk, it will take more than a capful.) After washing, get a sharper crease in pants by dipping the cloth in a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water. Then wring out the cloth and press the creases.

4. Wash Produce Vinegar may help remove bacteria and pesticide residues from fruits and veggies. Mix three parts water to one part white vinegar, and dispense in a spray bottle. Then rinse with water.

5. Dissolve Stubborn Glue Having trouble getting that annoying sticky label residue off a product? Or accidentally glue something together? Try using vinegar as a solvent to dissolve many common adhesives. Vinegar is also good at cutting grease.

6. Fight Hiccups We haven't tested this one, but some claim they were able to cure pesky hiccups instantly by swallowing a teaspoon of vinegar. If your other hiccup tricks don't work, it won't hurt to try a dash of the stuff.

7. Deter Cats We love cats here, no doubt, but sometimes you don't want them doing their business in the kids' sandbox. Or in your flower bed. According to HomeEnvy, a simple solution is to pour vinegar around the edges of the area you want to protect every few months.

Good Housekeeping already has an account with this email address. Link your account to use Facebook to sign in to Good Housekeeping. To insure we protect your account, please fill in your password below.

Your information has been saved and an account has been created for you giving you full access to everything goodhousekeeping.com and Hearst Digital Media Network have to offer. To change your username and/or password or complete your profile, click here.